Winter wonderland - advent calendar special

Advent calendars are a gift given at this time of year, predominantly to children but also enjoyed by adults.

 

I'm not going to go into the philosophical and religious reasonings behind advent calendars, but the standard structure involves a printed carton filled with a plastic tray. The tray is molded with 24 units, each holding a treat, usually chocolate. The tray is also fitted with a decorated foil lid.

 

A series of windows (pictured, below) are then perforated into the carton, each corresponding to a unit molded into the plastic tray.

 

During converting, each perforated window is numbered out of sequence (pictured, above; 5, 2, 1, 4, 3, as opposed to 1, 2, 3, 4, 5) up to 24, with each number referring to a date in December up to, and including, Christmas eve.

 

On each day of December until Christmas, usually in the morning, the consumer hunts out the correct window, pops it open, breaks the foil and is presented with their treat.

 

The outer cartons can be printed and branded in a way only truly limited by the traditionally rectangular shape of advent calendars.

 

As a result, brand owners and consumer product companies will often tie advent calendars in with well-known characters, TV programs and themes to give them added shelf appeal.

 

And while there’s no age restriction on buying an advent calendar, it can be seen that they are decorated and finished in different ways depending on the audience.

 

For younger audiences, Peppa Pig, Winnie the Pooh and  Mr. Men/Little Miss characters are used to decorate the carton (pictured, below).

 

For teens, The Simpsons and festive scenes, as pictured on Maltesers and Mars examples, are used to garner attention (pictured, below).

 

Young adults can choose from a selection of advent calendars with a retro theme, such as the one using the Where’s Wally? character from their childhood books, or from a variety of light-hearted, yet more sophisticated samples, as retailed in Marks and Spencer (pictured, below).

 

For discerning adults, advent calendars are given a more luxurious feel. For instance, the deep blue and gold used by Lindt on its advent calendars create an alluring appearance, while Thorntons has used Victoriana on its Continental advent calendar, including silhouettes of bikes, Victorian couples and other festive items (pictured, below).

 

The Thorntons Continental carton is triangular in shape, giving it added visual impact, and is topped off with a fabric bow attached to the front panel.

 

German marzipan specialist Niederegger has also extended beyond the standard rectangular shape, instead opting for a Christmas tree shape (pictured, left), a popular choice at this time of the year.

 

Using a simplified one color design, Christmas tree green, the Niederegger advent calendar is finished with a gold foil to simulate tinsel, baubles and other decorations placed on Christmas trees.

 

Even pets are able to enjoy this festive gift, as pet care brand Armitage is offering Good Boy and Good Girl advent calendars for dogs and cats respectively.

 

In this instance, the visual appeal is targeted at owners, with a puppy (pictured, right) and fluffy cat printed on the front panel to generate an "awww" reaction.